The Tunnel Light
by ellikanellika
Summary: Imagine that you are sitting on a train. It's an old train with those tiny compartments for six people. All seats around you are taken, only the one next to you is still free. Who would you offer the seat to?
1. Inability to Choose

**The Tunnel Light**

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><p><strong>Inability to Choose<strong>

When I was in primary school, in 4th or 5th grade I think, the teacher of the subject ethics asked us a question, which I was not able to answer. Before that, she told us: ''Imagine that you are sitting on a train. It's an old train with those tiny compartments for six people. All seats around you are taken, only the one next to you is still free. Who would you offer the seat to:

A homosexual

A HIV positive prostitute

A black skinned person

A Vietnam runaway

A former convict?''

The question always seemed strange to me. The subject was ethics; so why in the world would someone ask a child such a question? Adults told us that it was because they wanted us, the children, become aware of the injustices that happened around the world to people who were slightly different than the majority and were not at fault for their difference. However, I asked myself if what the adults were doing was actually true and fair. They say every man and woman irrespective of skin colour, disease, sexual orientation or mind, is an equal to any other man and woman in the world.

If that was true, why did they point them out as something special? Something strange? Something you should carefully think about before choosing?

Why did they want us to choose at all?

Why did they implant such thoughts into children's minds?

I did not understand it.

My parents, who happened to be homosexuals, always thought me to accept people the way they are and not looking at them in a curious or even strange way. They taught me to be tolerant and open minded.

Which is why I did not understand why the teacher asked us such a strange question. I could not answer it. I was not able to. Because I did not have it in me to choose between people that are supposed to be equals to me.

And now, many years later, while I'm running through the dark, almost demolished underground tunnel, screaming for help, calling his name, and people with bloody faces rushing to the direction I came from, I realize that I still cannot answer the question.

Because if I had answered that question hours before my arm was bleeding and my feet were rushing through the apocalypse to find him, I would have been dead now.

The inability to decide who is safer for me and who is not, saved my life.

Accepting people and letting them be around me helped me to survive.

Let's just hope now that I will survive without them for a few minutes.


	2. Eurostar

**The Tunnel Light**

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><p><strong>Eurostar<strong>

It was very loud. People were carelessly making their way through the wide hall of the Eurostar High Speed Train that would bring them through the Channel Tunnel. Thousands of groups and individuals speaking all languages of the world crowded the Brussels train station in order to catch a train and travel around the world.

If one watched the people from above, a diverse palette of hair colour could be seen moving around like small ants. Some, where laughing and talking with their friends, others were screaming into their phone and there were people who simply walked straight to the train doors.

There was a short Chinese woman talking loudly into her phone and she was having some problems with the communication due to the noise around her. On the other side of the station, near the station café, a neatly made up man with a large black scarf around his neck was laughing and talking with his boyfriend and trying to spend as much time together before the train would go – their French could be recognisable by miles. Somewhere in the huge crowd of people, a young black-haired woman that wore too many clothes for this season was trying to get lose of a tall rough man that shouted some pretty nasty things in Spanish – but people ignored him, and he was too blind to see the escaping beauty.

There was also a tall black skinned business man, whose expression was extremely concentrated on the signs that showed directions of certain trains; however, he seemed lost – which is why he tried to ask for help. He also thought that everyone in this world understood Texas - English. And lucky enough for him, most did.

On the opposite side of the train station from where the American was, there was another guy that an eye could easily catch. He had a short mohawk and his well build muscles were easily seen through his simple black T-Shirt. With his small backpack, he walked quietly towards the slide doors of his train, without even looking around. When he entered his train, he turned his head right and left and noticed that the train was almost full. He really needed to find a free seat.

There were many free seats at the back of the train, but the man had yet to discover them. On one of those seats in the back, there was a young brown-haired woman in simple worn-out jeans and a blue T-Shirt, covered with a jacket, talking happily into her phone; her head leaned on the window glass.

She had no idea that in two hours, she would be running through the screaming crowd of people in the dark tunnel with blood over their faces and panic throbbing through their bones.

''Excuse me.'' Someone interrupted the brown-haired girl's phone talk. She looked up and faced a very insecure Chinese girl with long black hair, wearing dark clothes in a typical gothic style.

''Yes?'' she asked back, not sure if the girl would understand her.

The Chinese girl looked at a small booklet she held in her hands and read something. At the same time, she tried to communicate: ''Is this seat taken?'' she read not sure if she spelled it right. For making sure the other girl understood her, she pointed to one of the five free seats.

''Yes yes. It's free.'' The petite nodded and smiled assuredly. The Chinese seemed to understand, bowed her head and slowly sat down in the middle seat opposite to the brown-haired girl. She took off her jacket and put it on the shelf above her head. Her small bag that seemed like it would explode any minute was lying on her lap. It was full of some stuff the girl threw in before she run away from her hometown. Of course, her new seat neighbour did not know that.

Not five minutes later, more and more people were coming in and filled the rest of the free seats around the waggon.

''Arrr thiz seats frii?'' came a soft boyish voice from the side and both girls looked up again. The gorgeous boy that was saying goodbye to his boyfriend few minutes ago was looking at the two girls with huge hopeful eyes. His French accent made the brunette smile and the Chinese one confused.

''It is free.'' Was the answer that made the man-beauty with his huge scarf smile. He put his small black bag on the shelf above and sat down elegantly next to the black-haired girl. ''Zank yu.'' He thanked them and pulled out his phone, starting to type a message.

''Departure in ten minutes.'' The mechanical female voice told them from the loudspeakers, but no one paid attention.

''Hi.'' Was the next interruption. All three of them looked up and were met with a tall man in a suit, whose smile showed all his perfectly white teeth. ''May I sit here?'' he asked in a loud and broad American accent, receiving polite nods in return. He looked around before he put his suitcase on the shelf and sat down next to the brown haired girl still talking on the phone. He watched her from the corner of his eye and noticed that she was a really pretty woman. A fresh smile on her face, clear voice and legs long like they should be – although she seemed to be a very short person.

''Departure in five minutes.'' The mechanical voice reminded them, again completely ignored. Why would it not be – they were all already seated.

Another black haired woman with too many clothes on her came rushing by, looking around frantically and stopping the moment, she realized that she missed a free seat. She walked back quickly and asked if the seat was taken while already squeezing through to sit next to the window, right opposite the brunette. The other four looked at her strangely, but no one said anything.

''Departure.'' Said the voice and the train started moving. A few people who rushed into the train were still looking free seats; one of them has been in the train for some time now, but it was only now that he found a free seat next to people who seemed nice enough to not stare at him with suspicious eyes.

''Is this seat taken?'' he asked with his deep voice, his eyes circling the five other people. Everyone looked at him and he already thought that he would have to go on and look for another seat, when the brunette next to the window with her phone still glued to her ear smiled at him and told him to feel free to sit down. He thanked her politely, glanced at her one more time before he calmly sat down next to the American businessman who was already typing something on his Ipad. The mohawked man had a backpack that seemed to be empty and he put it on the shelf, sighing with relief to be finally free.

And there they were. Six completely different people sitting next and opposite with each other, having no idea that in a few hours, they will have to prove their new-found friendship to each other and show their ability to survive.


End file.
